Healthy Eating Habits
Understanding Healthy Eating Habits
Following a healthy diet throughout one’s life helps prevent malnutrition in all its forms, as well as various noncommunicable diseases and conditions.
However, the rise in processed food production, rapid urbanization, and changes in lifestyle have shifted dietary patterns. People now consume more foods high in calories, fat, free sugars, or salt/sodium, and many do not consume enough fruits, vegetables, and dietary fiber, such as whole grains.
The appropriate composition of a varied, balanced, and healthy diet will vary according to individual needs—such as age, gender, lifestyle, and level of physical activity—as well as cultural context, locally available foods, and eating habits.
However, the basic principles of a healthy diet remain the same.
For adults
A healthy diet includes:
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Fruits, vegetables, and a variety of foods
Fruits, vegetables, legumes such as lentils and beans, tree nuts, and whole grains such as unprocessed corn, millet, oats, wheat, and brown rice.
At least 400 g (5 servings) of fruits and vegetables every day.
Potatoes, sweet potatoes, cassava, and other starchy tubers are not classified as fruits or vegetables in this guide.
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Fat
Less than 30% of total energy intake comes from fat.
Unsaturated fats—such as those found in fish, avocados, tree nuts, and sunflower, canola, and olive oils—are a better choice than saturated fats, such as those found in fatty meats, butter, palm and coconut oils, cream, cheese, ghee, and lard.
Industrial trans fats found in processed foods, fast food, snacks, fried foods, frozen pizza, pies, cookies, margarine, and spreads are not part of a healthy diet.
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Sugar-Free
Less than 10% of total energy intake comes from free sugars, which is equivalent to 50 g or about 12 level teaspoons for a person of healthy weight who consumes about 2,000 calories per day. Ideally, less than 5% of total energy intake is recommended for additional health benefits.
Most free sugars are added to foods or beverages by manufacturers, cooks, or consumers. Free sugars are also found in the sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices, and fruit juice concentrates.
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Salt
Less than 5 g of salt—equivalent to about 1 teaspoon—per day, and use iodized salt.
For infants and young children
During a child’s first two years of life, optimal nutrition supports healthy growth and enhances cognitive development.
Optimal nutrition also reduces the risk of being overweight or obese and of developing noncommunicable diseases later in life.
Recommendations for a healthy diet for infants and children are similar to those for adults, but the following factors are also important:
• Infants should be exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life.
• Breastfeeding should continue until the age of 2 and beyond.
• Starting at 6 months of age, breast milk should be supplemented with a variety of appropriate, safe, and nutrient-dense complementary foods. No salt or sugar should be added to complementary foods.
Understanding the Food Pyramid and the Food Plate
Symbols such as pyramids illustrate how the different components of a healthy diet complement one another. The base of the pyramid typically contains foods that should make up the largest portion of a healthy diet. Conversely, foods that should be eaten in smaller amounts or less frequently are shown in the smaller sections of the pyramid.
The same principle applies to your plate: half of it should be filled with foods that make up the largest portion of your diet.
Of course, no single food provides all the nutrients the body needs. Therefore, the goal is to eat a variety of foods from each food group to obtain all the necessary nutrients and other substances that support good health.
Whether in the form of a pyramid or a plate, most healthy eating plans emphasize the following:
• Eat more plant-based foods, including fruits, vegetables, and whole grains
• Choose low-fat proteins from a variety of sources
• Limit your intake of sugary foods and salt
• Controlling portion sizes
• Physically active
Practical tips for maintaining a healthy diet
High salt intake contributes to high blood pressure, which in turn increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. The source page states that 1.7 million deaths could be prevented each year if salt intake were reduced to the recommended level—less than 5 g per day.
People often don't realize how much salt they consume.
In many countries, most of the salt comes from processed foods—such as fast food, processed meats like bacon, ham, and salami, cheese, and salty snacks—or from foods that are often consumed in large quantities, such as bread.
Salt is also added to food during cooking—for example, through broth, bouillon cubes, soy sauce, and fish sauce—or at the table, such as table salt.
Evidence shows that in both adults and children, free sugar intake should be reduced to less than 10% of total energy intake, and reducing it to less than 5% of total energy intake provides additional health benefits.
Free sugars are all sugars added to foods or beverages by manufacturers, cooks, or consumers, as well as sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices, and fruit juice concentrates.
Consuming free sugars increases the risk of dental caries or tooth decay. Excess calories from foods and beverages high in free sugars also contribute to unhealthy weight gain, which can lead to overweight and obesity.
Vegetables & Fruits
To increase your fruit and vegetable intake, you can:
• Always include vegetables in your meals
• Eat fresh fruits and raw vegetables as snacks
• Eat fresh fruits and vegetables in season
• Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables.
Fat
Fat intake can be reduced by:
• Change the way you cook—trim the fat from meat; use vegetable oil (not animal fat); and boil, steam, or bake instead of frying.
• Avoid processed foods that contain trans fats and
• Limit your intake of foods high in saturated fat (such as cheese, ice cream, and fatty meats).
Sugar
Sugar intake can be reduced by:
• Limit your intake of foods and beverages that are high in sugar (such as sugar-sweetened beverages, snacks, and sugary candies); and
• Eat fresh fruits and raw vegetables as snacks instead of sugary snacks.
Salt, Sodium, and Potassium
You can reduce your salt intake by:
• Do not add salt, soy sauce, or fish sauce while preparing food.
• There is no salt on the table.
• Limit your intake of salty snacks.
• Choose products with lower sodium content.
Potassium, which can reduce the negative effects of increased sodium intake on blood pressure, can be increased by eating fresh fruits and vegetables.